


Coins and the Weighing and Trading of Hearts

by Diary



Category: London Spy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Alternate Universe - Werecreatures, Awkwardness, Bechdel Test Fail, Canon Gay Character, Families of Choice, Friendship/Love, M/M, Mother-Son Relationship, Mystery Character(s), Mythology - Freeform, Other Fandoms Not Mentioned in Tags, POV Danny Holt, POV Male Character, POV Queer Character, References to Drugs, Romance, Stealth Crossover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-13
Updated: 2017-06-13
Packaged: 2018-11-13 16:52:48
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11189343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Diary/pseuds/Diary
Summary: AU. “I went to university when I was fifteen,” Not-Joe announces, and what Danny hears in the undercurrent is: I’m human. Complete.





	Coins and the Weighing and Trading of Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own London Spy.

The first time, Danny dismisses it.

He took something at a club, ended up in the middle of a deserted street with faulty, flickering streetlights, and during his stumbling around, he saw a beautiful man jogging with some sort of big cat at his side. The man didn’t acknowledge him at all, but the big cat glanced at him for a long second.

It felt real, but he was seeing colours he normally couldn’t, and even through his scattered thoughts, he remembered other incidents where things felt real on trips.

…

A month later, he’s on a tampon run for Sara when, suddenly, he finds his eyes drawn to a nearby bridge.

Walking on the pedestrian side is the man. He’s tall with a conservative, sandy-haired haircut and wears an expensive, black suit and tie. Head held up, he walks straight-backed and briskly. It’s not confidence so much as he just knows where he’s going, how to get there, and feels no need to acknowledge his surroundings.

Normally, he wouldn’t pay much attention, but- the big cat is with the man. It’s definitely not a fox or any type of normal cat, whether house or feral, and-

What makes something inside him itch is the realisation absolutely none of the other joggers, the mum pushing a pram, or the cyclists ever seem to look in the man’s direction. A bloke that fit in such a nice suit and exuding such certainty will always receive stolen glances, at least, if not outright stares.

More than the man, however, is the exotic animal. Foxes are relatively common, but there are plenty of people who still exhibit uneasiness, curiosity, or a combination when they spot one. Strays and lost pets often garner attention when they get near human buildings and structures.

Yet, no one is paying any mind to the big cat casually walking in step with a well-dressed businessman.

His mobile vibrates, and by the time he’s done reading Pavel’s text, the man and big cat are completely out-of-sight.

…

Soon enough, he finds himself near another bridge, and this time, the man is kneeling down, and he can’t make out the words, but he can _hear_ the man’s quiet voice speaking.

Whatever the man is saying isn’t impressing the bored, irritably slouched big cat.

He hasn’t taken anything for over a week, and alcohol-wise, he only had two beers last night.

Suddenly, the big cat pierces him with slitted eyes and lets out an unnerving noise.

The man glances up and over at him, but it’s too quick for Danny to catch the colour of his eyes.

What happens next, he isn’t entirely sure of. The man withdraws a coin from his jacket pocket, tosses it up into the air, and involuntarily, Danny’s eyes follow it.

When it lands on the ground with a small, soft clink, the man and big cat are gone.

He looks around for a good ten minutes before coming back to where the coin might be and immediately finding it. It’s gold and cool in his hand. A close look reveals a woman on one side and a man on the other.

…

“William the Third and Mary the Second,” Scottie announces. Setting down his loupe down, he asks, “Are you sure you found this on the side of the road, Danny? You didn’t find it in some change you had?”

“Yes,” he answers. Hesitating, he finds himself saying, “I didn’t exactly steal it, but there’s a bit more to the story.”

Scottie’s expression is merely interested.

Sinking down onto the nearby sofa, he starts with the first night on the bridge and works up to today.

“Hmm.” Scottie tosses the coin to him, and he catches it. “It might be worth some money. As for the man, I can’t say. Generally, I tend towards scepticism, but I do believe there are greater things and people out there than can easily be quantified. Perhaps, this man was simply an eccentric collector, used to being unnoticed, or perhaps, there’s something greater in play. In any case, a good argument can be made the coin belongs to you, now.”

He tosses it back. “I’m not interested in the money. Could you find a museum or serious collector and donate it for me?”

“Of course,” Scottie answers with a soft smile.

“Thanks, Scottie.”

…

When he gets home and helps Sara start dinner, he tells her about the coin, and suddenly, she’s frowning and dragging him to Pavel’s room. “We might need to call your gran. Danny might’ve met- something.”

Once Pavel’s been told, he says, “My mum’s mum is Irish. Don’t laugh. She genuinely believes in things like leprechauns and the like. When we moved here from Ukraine, she used to make sure I had some salt in my left pocket and a slice of bread in my right. She’d leave cream out of the back porch, and even when I showed her a video of a stray cat drinking it, she still insisted it might be some spirit or other the rest of the time.”

“What would she think this might been,” he curiously inquires.

Pavel shrugs. “I’ll call her tomorrow and ask."

…

Pavel never gets around to calling his grandmum, and soon, Danny puts the man and big cat out of his mind.

Now, he’s jumping out of his skin, is afraid he might never see another person again, and can acutely feel the sweat on his skin.

He doesn’t know why he throws his mobile down onto the street, but as soon as he does, he realises what a mistake he just made. Scottie is going to be irritated but by try to push it aside in favour of pure concern, and if he has to give a number to anyone, he’ll have to use Pavel’s, and Pavel will not be happy if this does happen.

Warm hands brush his and press the mobile into his hand, and he finds himself looking right at the man.

“Are you okay?”

The big cat isn’t around, he notices, and the man isn’t in a suit. He’s sweaty and in running clothes, and he can vaguely smell the warm, musky scent of the sweat. He wants to bury himself in into it.

Blue eyes, he sees, and he abruptly remembers Rich once rambling on about blue-eyed creatures being the most beautiful and the most deadly. _Brown are Earth-bound, Danny boy, and then, came those with blue, green, and gray, and they took over. It’s science, in fact. Everyone was once black or brown, and then, mutations of white skin and pale eyes came, and look who rules, now._

“Me? I’m fine. You don’t know me, but if you did, you’d know I’m always fine,” he finds himself babbling.

There’s suddenly a drink container in his hand, and he doesn’t know whether it’s a tear or sweat, but a warm finger is on his face and leaving dryness in its place.

Then, the man is running away, and he manages to call, “What about your drink?”

“You can keep it!”

…

A woman glares at him.

She has the same hair and eyes of the man, though, her eyes are icy and cruel.

Jolting awake with an uneasy, confused, disorientated feeling, he fumbles for the drink container.

…

There’s no certainty when the man spots him. Instead, he’s clearly wary as he slows and approaches.

“My name’s Danny,” he announces. “I’m, um- A few months ago, I thought I saw you and some sort of big cat walking over a bridge, but I wasn’t exactly sober. That was the first time. Then, one time, someone who looked like you tossed a coin into the air. It’s been donated to a museum. The thing is, I know how crazy this all must sound, but- Don’t worry. I’m not going to bother you. I just thought I should return this.”

Setting the drink container down, he walks away.

Feeling eyes on him, he looks back and sees the man holding it and watching him.

He walks back over.

“My name is Joe.”

No, it’s not, he knows.

“Nice to meet you.” Offering his hand, he feels different sensations flitting through when the man shakes it.

…

Not-Joe shows up at his flat when Sara and Pavel aren’t around, and they end up in the country.

He can’t see the big cat anywhere, but he can feel hidden eyes on him.

“I went to university when I was fifteen,” Not-Joe announces, and what Danny hears in the undercurrent is: I’m human.

Before, he never gave much thought to God, the paranormal, or the other sorts of life out there, but none of them are hard to accept in the face of the evidence. If Not-Joe is human, he’s not an ordinary one, even beyond his clear genius.

“I noticed you didn’t have any food in your fridge when I visited your flat. You didn’t have any takeout menus or numbers for restaurants, either, but then, I suppose you wouldn’t. You’d already memorised the numbers, wouldn’t you, and known what they had and what you wanted.” He holds up the sandwich. “This is good, but you didn’t make it. Would you like to come over tonight? I’m making dinner. My flatmates will probably be there, but they won’t mind.”

Too much, at any rate, he doesn’t add aloud.

Hesitation and confusion are clear in Not-Joe, but he answers, “Yes. I’d like that. Thank you.”

Danny wants so badly to kiss him, but a simple touch might severely startle Not-Joe.

“Can you tell me what your real name is, now?”

Something close to relief passes over his face, and there’s the makings of a smile when he nods. “My name is Alex.”

…

Alex has soft cider, only eats half of everything on his plate, and divides the leftovers between Sara, Pavel, and Danny.

“I’ll see you out,” Danny insists.

He’s not sure he’s ever going to get to kiss Alex or do more with him, but even if he can’t, he wants Alex to stay in his life for as long possible.

He wishes Alex had something of a life he (Danny) could wish to stay a part of, too, but aside from the big cat and his country walks, Alex’s life consist solely of numbers and whatever his real job is (he’s not an investment banker, but this lie isn’t one Danny cares about).

They end up on an empty bridge, and a streetlight shines down on Alex.

“Kindness, gifts- they’re unusual for me,” Alex announces.

He smiles. “You mean that people being kind and giving you gifts without expectation is unusual?”

Something beautiful crosses Alex’s face and stays in his eyes when he nods. “Yes.”

More than most people not understanding his maths, he’s not used to anyone understanding him at all, Danny realises with a pang.

“We- my interactions with most involve trade,” Alex informs him.

He doesn’t like the undercurrents to this at all.

Getting the feelings under control and banishing them as best he can, he shakes his head and wraps a hand around Alex’s. He almost lets go when Alex’s starts to slightly tremble, but holding on, he takes a breath. “I have a friend, Scottie, who’s always a little unnerved about my intuition. Numbers are easy for you. Well, people are usually easy for me. I know when people are lying most of the time. Why’s usually trickier. I can always tell the really bad, but sometimes, people aren’t bad enough, and they manage to slip past.”

“I don’t know what your thoughts, the ones besides numbers, are, but I know they’re interesting. That’s mostly why. Obviously, if you wanted it, I’d love for you to come to my room with me, but- I’m not looking- That is- If you tell me things, things about what you think and feel and like and don’t, and want to hear about me in return, that’s not only fair, but I’d love it. Otherwise, though, I’m not looking to trade. Even if you didn’t have a big cat who occasionally keeps you company, going that way just always has a hollowness to it, right? Or at least, for me, that’s always been the case.”

“Her name is Anthea,” is Alex’s response. “And she’s not mine.”

Danny laughs.

“The coin would have given you luck,” Alex adds with a hint of sadness.

“If I’d kept it, what are the chances I’d have seen you again?”

“You wouldn’t have. I couldn’t have found it if I set out to, but if I came near its owner in the future, I’d know to remain unseen.”

“Sounds like getting rid of it is what brought me luck, then,” he offers.

Alex smiles.

…

They end up back in the flat and in his room, and in the morning, he's relieved to find his vague fears of finding Alex gone were nothing but vague fears.

…

Alex talks about maths, the U.N., thoughts and dreams he had as a child, and Danny’s met plenty of interesting people, but he never realised a person could have such a beautiful mind.

Sometimes, he wonders if he should be scared, but he never is. Parts of Alex are easy to understand, and parts of him are impossible, but the mundane and mysterious, they’re all something he loves exploring.

…

One night, Alex doesn’t come home, and Danny wakes up in the middle of the night to find the big cat ( _Anthea often resembles a lynx_ , Alex had once told him) curled up on Alex’s side of the bed.

It hits him he’s not drugged, this isn’t normal, and even without being scared, irritation, intense confusion, or some other deep emotion is what this would cause in most other people.

Brief concern for Sara and Pavel does go through him, but based on what Alex’s said, he knows she’s unlikely to bother normal humans who don’t know what Alex is.

Without Alex, the sleep he managed to fall into was uneasy, he’s glad to see something from Alex’s life, and so, he asks, “Is Alex alright?”

An unpleasant noise emits from her, and she pointedly turns her head and pulls so the covers are more on her side than his.

He gets out of bed, manages to find a bottle of water shoved into the corner of a kitchen cabinet, pours some into a paper bowl, and goes to back to his room. Setting the bowl on Alex’s nightstand, he digs out a set of top sheets from a drawer, goes back to bed, and covers up.

She looks over at him, and his mobile dings.

There’s a voicemail from Alex explaining there’s an emergency at work, and he might have to stay at the office for a few days.

“Thank you,” he says.

She nestles deeper under the covers, and soon, strange snores fill the room.

 …

In the morning, the bowl has been emptied, and aside from Alex’s side being wrinkled, there’s no evidence anyone or anything was ever there.

…

Alex grows even quieter and more introspective than normal, and uneasiness begins to settle in Danny’s gut.

One lazy afternoon, they’re in bed, and he finds himself asking, “What’re you thinking?”

Alex looks over with soft eyes. “Say it again?”

He does.

The soft smile and gentle kiss warms him and fills him with almost giddy happiness to the point he lets the, “Nothing,” pass by without analysing it.

…

He’s never told anyone Alex was the mysterious man with the coin.

He wonders if Scottie might have been less challenging if he had or if Scottie would have been even sharper and more willing to reveal and hint at private information despite his discomfort.

It doesn’t matter, he supposes. Scottie gave his blessing to Alex earlier, and Alex seems content.

He wishes he could be, too.

Worse, this is a night where Alex appears almost sleepy. Anthea never comes during them, but there are nights when Alex will slip out into the night and run or walk for hours. He never wants Danny to come, and Danny knows he manages to make Alex feel guilty despite efforts not to.

He sits down, and he’s not sure what exactly Alex senses, but before he can say anything, Alex says, “Danny, you don’t need to tell me anything.”

“I need you to know,” he responds.

It crosses his mind he’s never told Alex he loves him, and he debates whether he should.

“I’ve done a lot of different things with a lot of different people,” he says. “And most of it, I’m not ashamed of. Some of it, it was just for fun, and some of it meant more. There were bad experiences and good ones. Bad people and good ones, and the experiences didn’t always match up with the people.”

“But, uh, when I was nineteen- I look back, and I don’t know who that person was. I was out of my mind.”

He manages to get everything out, and it feels like an eternity, but Alex looks at him calm eyes devoid of condemnation and holds his hand up with his palm towards Danny.

Breathing out a sigh and laughing, he puts his palm against Alex’s, and part of him is drained, but the rest of him- He’s never, ever been so in love before, and for once, he’s a little scared, but he ignores this in favour of easing down next to Alex, closing his eyes, and breathing in the scent when Alex wraps around him.

…

In the morning, Alex surprises him by saying, “Let’s go for a walk.”

“What about your job?”

“I’ll call in,” Alex answers.

He wonders, _and say what?_ , but letting his excitement take over, he says, “That’d be great. I’d like that.”

…

They sit by the water, and Alex suddenly announces with clear confusion, “People like you aren’t supposed to exist.”

He can’t tell if there’s accusation in the tone or not. “How do you mean?”

Whether there’s accusation or not, there is clear frustration eating at Alex.

Taking Alex's hand, he says, “It’s alright. Or even if it’s not, whatever it is, you can tell me, Alex. I promise.”

“Sometimes, trades are required, regardless of what the parties involved want,” Alex declares. Hunching farther into himself, he continues, “If you hadn’t told me last night- My feelings don’t surprise me. Yours do. Yours- I knew how this would end. Then, I had ideas of how the ending might come and go. You- you failed to see people are easy for me, too. In many ways, they’re easier for me than for you. I’ve never met anyone less easy to understand than you.”

He takes this in.

“Did you really expect for no one to ever fall in love with you? Did you imagine you’d spend the rest of your life alone?”

“Yes.”

His heart is beating too fast, and he yearns for Alex, to be able to do something for him. “I can’t begin to understand what that must feel like.”

“You always knew you’d find someone?”

“Always,” he answers.

“I can’t imagine what that must feel like,” Alex quietly says.

Sadness, hurt, and fear settles into him. “Well- you have. If it- no, it doesn’t. I was going to say, ‘If it makes you feel any better.’ You were prepared for me to break your heart, but I know you don’t want to break mine.” He sympathetically squeezes Alex’s hand. “It’s going to break yours when you do, and you’re not prepared for that. It’s the one thing you couldn’t prepare for. I understand. I- obviously, I don’t want this to happen, and I’m probably not going to take this well later on, but I know you aren’t doing this to be cruel. You didn’t mean for this to happen anymore than I did. I’m just being very calm and detached right now, but I honestly don’t know how long that’s going to last, so-”

He kisses Alex.

“Best do it quickly,” he advises.

Shuddering, Alex looks away.

Danny keeps a hold of his hand.

“There are many wars,” Alex says. “There are wars happening every day that few even know about.”

He glances over, and Danny gives a small nod.

“I have two mothers. My birth mother, she struggled with alcohol and drugs. She thought they had damaged me. Perhaps, they did, but I was never unintelligent. Even before I could walk and properly speak, I grasped numbers and the mathematical proponents of shapes.”

“Before I started school, something happened. I was hurt.” Alex is quiet for a long minute. “I don’t know how. It’s not something I’ve ever wanted to know. My mother’s employer stopped by, and she recognised my genius. She healed me. What she is, I don’t have the right to tell, but she isn’t human.”

“However, there’s always a price. She claimed me as her son and raised me. Her name is Frances.”

“And she’s the one at war?”

“She didn’t start it, and if she had her way, she’d remain neutral,” Alex answers with a nod. “I owe her more than my life.”

“So-” He tries to understand. “You have to help her fight?”

“Death is a very real possibility,” Alex bluntly says “And if it doesn’t come to that, these wars can last for longer any human war ever has and ever will.”

“When?”

“I don’t know.” Helplessly, Alex adds, “It’ll be soon. I- I had made peace with what was expected of me. I had made peace with- You said you weren’t looking to trade. I wish you’d kept the coin or sold it.”

“I’m not going to apologise. Say I’m sorry,” he says. “Try to tell me, if you can, before you go, okay? I love you, Alex. And if you have to go and possibly die, then- that’s what you have to do. I won’t try to stop you, but I’m not going to pretend you don’t matter to me. That what we have won’t always matter.”

He sees Alex trying to blink away tears, and reaching up, he wipes them away as they fall.

“I love you,” Alex croaks out.

Danny kisses him.

…

After they go to bed, he puts a hand on Alex’s chest. “Give me another coin.”

Nodding, Alex takes his wallet off the nightstand, pulls a coin out, and hands it to him.

Sitting up, he turns on a lamp and examines it. It’s as if it’s just been freshly minted, but he instinctively knows it’s much, much older than the first one Alex tossed and would be worth more than just some money.

Digging a pair of scissors out of his nightstand, he cuts a strand of his hair as close to root as he can and wraps it around the coin.

Getting out of bed, he places the coin on the window still directly under the moonlight.

Coming back to bed, he kisses Alex, turns off the lamp, and wraps around him.

…

In the morning, after they’ve dressed and had breakfast, he holds the coin out. “Here. You don’t have to ever give it back to me or even bring it back here, but it’s always going to mine. Keep it for me.”

Alex nods. “I am sorry.”

Sighing, he kisses Alex. “I understand.”

…

Despite the invisible cloud hanging over them, he's happy, and then, one night, they make love.

The next night, Alex doesn’t come home.

…

Occasionally, Anthea shows up, but there’s never any messages from Alex.

He takes comfort in the fact, at best, she’s never anything less than vaguely irritated with everything he (Danny) does, and at worst, she actively disdains him.

One night, he asks, “Did you actually like Alex? Do you, I mean?”

Snorting, she chews up one of his slippers.

“Good,” he says. “I’m glad he found something close to a genuine friend.”

...

He wakes, finds the coin sitting on his nightstand, and laughs in sheer relief. He knows it’s too soon to start telling everyone will be back, and he’ll need to start figuring what to say when Alex does, but-

Alex is going to come home, soon.

…

Except, Alex _doesn’t_ come, and he can’t remember the last time Anthea visited.

…

He’s sitting in a park when a shadow falls over him.

It’s Rich, and he wonders why the damn coin can’t even give him a tiny shred of the luck it’s supposed to give.

Then, Not-Rich sits down and takes the bottle from him.

Rich would never take alcohol from- and looking closer, he sees this man is dressed in a sharp suit, carrying an umbrella, and there’s no sign of a fancy car anywhere nearby.

“Really drive it home, why don’t you,” he viciously demands, “by appearing in the form of one of my worst nightmares.”

“You’ve made your choices,” the man says. “You made them. You can’t blame him or Alistair Turner for how they and, by extension, you turned out.”

“His name is Alex."

“Which mother do you believe called him that?”

“It doesn’t matter. He told me his name was Alex, and he was telling the truth.”

“Hm.” The man taps his umbrella against the bench. “He is alive. But there’s always a price, Daniel Edward Holt.”

“I’ll pay it.”

“You’re drunk.” The man starts to stand. “When you-”

Danny grabs his arm. “I’ll pay it,” he says as calmly as he can manage. “Just tell me.”

A soft chuckle escapes the man. “I can only tell you how to find him. I can only tell you the price for that. Once you do- I can’t say what might happen, or what you might have to do. What you might lose.”

“I understand.”

“If you only knew how many times I’ve heard that.” The man sighs. “Very well. Blood or semen. Milk. A new lock of hair from you. The coin must wrapped in it and coated in either your blood or semen. Place it in a bowl of milk under a bridge. In the morning, clean it with water and cloth. And then- start looking. Keep it with you, and soon enough, you’ll find him.”

“Be warned, however, if you do this, you could end up drawing unwanted, potentially dangerous attention to yourself. Right now, the coin simply protects you as best it can, gives you a bit of luck every now and then. You aren’t the only one who has such a coin, and no one important cares about them or you.”

“But if you start doing things like this, people will notice, and they will care.”

he suddenly thinks of something. “If I do this, will it put Alex in more danger?”

“I don’t know.”

“Are you a friend of his?”

The man laughs. “No. But that isn’t the important question to ask. ‘Are you an enemy of his?’ The answer to that is, no, I’m not. I neither care whether he lives or dies, suffers or prospers, but I have no interest in seeing or cause to see him die or suffer. I owe Anthea many debts, and taking a form so that she can explain all this to you is not something she wishes to do.”

“What is she?”

“That isn’t my right to tell.”

He considers this. “Then, what are you?”

Exhaling, the man stands. “Someone who once made a deal I should have been cleverer about the terms of.” He straightens. “Still, you and this country have more to thank me for than you’ll ever realise. You didn’t ask, but here’s my advice: Go on with your life and try to put him out of your mind as best you can.”

“Thank you for telling me the price,” he responds.

…

Making sure everything is sterilised, he discovers drawing blood isn’t too different from how a person shoots up.

…

He always borrows Scottie’s car when he needs to take Sara to the clinic for a refill on her birth control.

This probably won’t be the case in the future, he realises with a pang of regret.

In the waiting room, there was a picture of a maze in a magazine, and suddenly, he could clearly see a young Alex wandering through it, and he knew by the throbbing of the coin in his pocket, if he started driving, he could come across the maze.

And so, he drops Sara off at their flat, and he’ll admit this cowardly and unfair, but rather than call Scottie, he sends a text saying he needs to use the car for a bit longer than normal, and he’ll try to have it back soon.

Eventually, he comes up to a gated estate with a manor.

Digging the coin out, he sits on the bonnet and waits.

…

The woman from his dreams has the same glare in person.

“Do you know where that coin comes from? What the person who gave it to you is?”

“No,” he answers. “I mean, sorry, I know Alex is human, I just tend to think he’s something else. I don’t know what you are. He said it wasn’t his right to tell. I know who you are, though. You’re one of his mums. Frances Turner. I’m Danny. Danny Holt.”

He isn’t surprised she refuses to shake his hand.             

“If you accepted it, why are you doing this? What more could you possibly want?”

“Him. Almost two years ago, Alex tossed a coin in the air and disappeared. I asked a friend to donate it for me. I didn’t get any money for it. I, um, don’t know how much you know, but for over a year, Alex has been my boyfriend, Mrs Turner. He told me there was a war you were involved in. That he’d have to leave soon. I asked for another coin and wrapped my hair around it, put it in the moonlight, and told him that he never had to give it back but that it would always be mine.”

Abruptly, her eyes go from cold, angry, and glaring to almost defeated with hints of softness. “Come inside, Daniel.”

Inside is largely cold and empty with large pieces of furniture covered in sheets.

“We had hoped Alistair would restore this place to its former glory." Sighing, she glances at him. “I don’t know why he’d choose the likes of you. Humans and others, he could have had so many choices.”

“I made him think he couldn’t break my heart,” he says. “I didn’t mean to, but I did. And the reason he went for that was because he knew-” He stops. “Sorry,” he quietly says.

She shrugs. “You didn’t have to accept his heart.”

Feeling childish and unsteady, he can’t help but reply, “He took mine first.”

Something between a scoff and a chuckle emits from her. “Never mind that you know better, that hearts can never be taken unless given, I don’t understand my son very well. I never have. Yet, I do know him well enough to know that, whatever the appeal, it’s likely he found himself losing it to you. You didn’t make him think he couldn’t break yours. He simply believed it so. A shame-” She shakes her head.

They stop at a door.

“There’s always a price.”

“I know.”

Inside what he immediately knows is Alex’s old room, his eyes are drawn to a trunk.

Alex used to keep in the boot of Alex’s car.

Walking over, Frances kneels and starts to open it.

Sick waves of anger overtake him. “Is he- Did you put him in-”

“Oh, do drop the melodrama,” she orders. “Not only do you know that a world beyond what humans consider natural exists, I have no doubt you’ve, at least, watched those horrid Harry Potter films. Perhaps, even read one or more of the even viler books. It’s a magician’s trunk, Daniel.”

“Alistair used to spend hours inside it,” she adds. “It’s a place he’s always felt safe.”

Finishing opening, she stands. “There’s always a price. If you want my son, get in and lay down. I’ll close the lid.”

He studies her.

There’s something she’s not telling him, but she isn’t lying.

Bracing himself, he gets into the trunk, and darkness envelopes him.

…

Alex is talking to a man, but he can’t hear what either of them are saying.

…

He chest aches and stings, and he sees the man putting a heart (my heart, he hazily realises) on a scale with another heart on the other side.

…

Waking up in bed, he looks over to see Alex sitting at the window and reading.

“Danny!” Alex is immediately pressing a gentle hand against his forehead.

“I’m okay. Just a little tired and a lot confused.”

Alex smiles.

He links his fingers through Alex’s.

“I was going to die,” Alex says. “The trunk kept me in a state of limbo. Frances- she had no right to do what she did. She sent you as a champion and a sacrifice. I’m sorry.”

“I chose to go to you,” he gently says. “So, uh, what happened?”

“Do you remember anything?”

Sitting up, he realises he doesn’t feel any pain or soreness. Aside from being a little tired, he doesn’t feel different at all.

He recounts seeing the man and Alex talking and his heart being placed on the scales.

Alex sighs. “Frances made a deal without my consent. If she sent someone whose heart was equal to mine in weight, I would be returned back to the land of the living along with them. If she sent someone whose wasn’t, both she and the person she sent would die.”

The heartbroken look on Alex’s face alarms him, but before he can say anything, Alex continues, “I’m sorry. I didn’t want you subjected to it. I wanted you sent back, but it was too late. You were-” Alex takes a teary breath. “You were neither alive nor dead. Without his intervention, you would have been dead once she reopened the trunk. It was the only hope.”

“Hey." Pulling Alex onto the bed, he wraps around him. “We’re both okay.”

Once the muscles in Alex relax, Danny asks, “What now? Do you still have to fight for Frances in her war?”

“No,” Alex answers. Detangling himself, he looks at Danny. “That’s done. If you still want me, I’m fully yours, now. As much as I’ll always love her, I owe Frances nothing more, and I don’t want to get involved in her affairs.”

Smiling, Danny kisses him. “Only you, Alex.”

…

One day in the distant future, he smiles at the man who once weighed his heart. “Hello, again.”

The man looks at the gold ring on Danny’s left ring finger. “I’ve known of those who destroy or otherwise rid themselves of coins given, but you are the first to have it remade into a different type of treasure.”

“It’ll always be mine,” he says, “but Alex will always have a claim to it.”

Even death isn’t going to part them, he knows.

“Very well. If you wish it, you may wait until he arrives.” 


End file.
